Crankin' It Up

The most famous train wreck in American history happened at the end of April, 1900 at Vaughan, Mississippi. The song "Casey Jones" has been a favorite since it was published in 1909, even though there is no such thing as a six-eight wheeler, and Mrs. Jones did NOT have another papa on the Salt Lake Line. This is one of the first songs I learned, and our son was singing it when he was five years old.

Ernie Pyle interviewed Casey's fireman, Sim Webb in the 1930's, and if you can find a copy of Home Country, the interview begins on the bottom of page 95. Sim went back to work on the Illinois Central after the wreck, and was in another train wreck in 1918. That time he went down with the engine into a river when a trestle collapsed. He miraculously survived that wreck, and his family convinced him to quit the railroad to become a bricklayer. A wall collapsed on him in his new job, breaking a leg and putting him in the hospital for two months. I guess the moral here would be "Don't Be What You Ain't".

You will notice that this record has extreme wear. Every copy of Casey Jones that I have seen has been worn out. Everybody loves this song.